Littlesister – That’s the same reason I bought a Broil King Hi-Power single electric burner hot plate. I was living in a house in which there wasn’t enough space between the stovetop and the bottom of the microwave that was mounted above the stove, to accommodate the pressure canner I had already purchased! Now, that I’ve moved to a house with a glass-topped stove, I’m very glad I already have that Broil King hot plate 😉
Columbia River – I felt the very same way when I first read the book Living Terrors!
Mama Cando – I’m glad that your grand-nephew is progressing so well 🙂
OldMtWoman – You’re so right! We should definitely step up our purchases of grains and legumes at this point. I’ve been meaning to get more lentils as well as some spelt and hard & soft white wheat berries for my long-term storage pantry. Looks like now’s the time to do it. As to the N-95 masks, it’s great you’ve been able to clean and re-use them to protect yourself from dust and similar particles. If you haven’t already seen it, you might want to check out the research article that was published last Summer in the American Journal of Infection Control discussing the effect that 1 minute of irradiation with UV-C light had on N-95 masks that were deliberately contaminated with influenza virus. The results of the study were very interesting and showed that just a 1-minute exposure to the correct type of UV light could significantly reduce viable influenza viruses on the N-95 masks. The results varied depending on the model(s) of masks being tested. So, it seems as though, in a pinch, if you had to re-use N-95 masks in a pandemic influenza situation, treating the used masks with a good quality UV-C light wand might make it safer to re-use them (especially if you could switch out the contaminated straps for new straps or decontaminate the straps some other way, such as with disinfecting wipes, for example. Surprisingly, it appears that the straps were more difficult to disinfect with the UV-C light than were the facepieces of the masks! Smooth straps without any bumps or ridges on them were reportedly easier to decontaminate with the UV-C light). Of course, having enough masks to be able to use a fresh one each time and then discard it safely would be best. However, if your supply of N-95 masks (or of higher grade masks or respirator filters) was very low, this technique might be helpful. Here’s the name of that article and the webpage address for it: UltraViolet Germicidal Irradiation of N-95 Masks Contaminated with Influenza Virus, https://www dot ajicjournal dot org/article/S0196-6553%2818%2930140-8/fulltext If I read the study’s results correctly, it seems that two of the tested N-95 mask models that were among the easiest to decontaminate with the UV-C light were the 3M-1870 and the Moldex 1712.